After the 1840 Comanche raid at
the Linnville, TX warehouses, the Indians adorned themselves and their horses
in ribbons of calico and silk, as well as hats and other assorted clothing they
confiscated.Texas Rangers and local
settlers formed a battle ready militia near Plum Creek to ambush the returning
Comanche, recover the loot and punish them for their raid. Settlers also
recruited members of the Tonkawa tribe to act as scouts and report the location
of the Linnville Looters as they traveled northward.The scouts were told to tie white strips of
cloth to their arms or head to identify them as allies. The Comanche may have
had no fiercer enemy than the Tonkawa.

"I resolved some of my interpretive
matters with the story by having a Tonkawa scout observing the Comanche looters
from a hiding place.I had dreams about
the position of the observer.”